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HMS LADY OF THE ISLES

The HMS *Lady of the Isles* is a proper piece of Cornish history, sitting upright and surprisingly intact at 50 metres. She started life as a Scillies ferry, then became a salvage vessel, and finally a cable ship before she went down in 1940. We love how her story plays out underwater; you can still see the lines of her ferry days, even with the years of growth on her hull. Descending onto the wreck, you'll feel the chill of the deep Atlantic water, a stark contrast to the lively colours colonising her. Deadman’s fingers bloom from every surface, and the stern, in particular, is a riot of jewel anemones and hydroids. We’ve often seen conger eels poking their heads from inside the collapsed holds, and there are always plenty of squat lobsters scuttling around. This is a dive for experienced technical divers, comfortable with deeper air or mixed gas, who appreciate a wreck with a genuine narrative. Explore her carefully; the visibility here can be challenging, but on a good day, the sight of her masts reaching up into the gloom is something else. Our top tip: dive her on a slack tide, otherwise, you'll be fighting a significant current.